All The Wrong Parts
by E. G. Fitzgerald
Summary: Hermione disguises herself as a boy, and learns more than she could ever imagine.
1. Default Chapter

Hermione tapped her quill lazily on the table, staring at nothing in particular on the rug in the common room. She twirled an ink stained pinky in a rebellious strand of hair and sighed, leaning back in her chair. Her gaze drifted to the window and she noticed that a sluggish snow storm was brewing.  
  
Yes, for once in Hermione Granger's life, she was bored with her schoolwork. Pushing her half completed Arithmancy assignment to the side, she stood up and wandered to the roaring fireplace. She laced her fingers together and stretched them above her head, yawning. She almost would have been relaxed if two loud voices hadn't barged into the Common room followed by two chilly looking Gryffindors.  
  
Harry and Ron shed their winter layers and tossed them to the floor, paying no attention to Hermione.  
  
"Ugh." Hermione thought to herself, rolling her eyes and slumping back into her chair. "More Quidditch talk."  
  
"Hey!" Ron exclaimed finally noticing Hermione and stretching his rather long body onto the sofa next to Hermione. "You'll never guess in a MILLION years what happened!"  
  
"Yeah! It was amazing!" Harry said, joining Ron with an exuberant leap on the red and gold couch, kneeing him in the process. Ron cringed and let forth a painful sounding "Oomph!"  
  
Ignoring Ron, Harry continued. "Ok.so Angelina was zooming up towards Marcus-"  
  
"And Marcus just JUMPS off his broom in MIDAIR!" Ron interrupted, shoving Harry to the floor.  
  
"Yeah and the-", Harry started, but he wouldn't finish.  
  
"Ugh!" Hermione stood up in the middle of his sentence with a frustrated stomp, and walked out of the room.  
  
"What's bothering her?" Harry whispered to Ron, afraid she might still be in earshot.  
  
"Like I would know." It was now Ron's turn to roll his eyes. "Who knows how she works anyway?"  
  
~  
  
Hermione dragged her feet up the stairs. This was horrible! Absolutely horrible! First, she couldn't finish her favorite class work, second, she was moody for no reason, and third, she still hadn't come up with an idea for the Magic Fair.  
  
Since the beginning of Hermione's first year, when she first learned about the 6th and 7th year exclusive Magic Fair, she would lie in bed staring at her stone ceiling, dreaming up different experiments to tinker with. A slow smile crept across her face. If only she could get a grasp on what was bothering her. Stopping at the very top stair to the girl's dormitory, Hermione slouched down against the wall and let out an aggravated sigh.  
  
"What is wrong with me?!" Hermione grabbed a handful of frizzy brown hair and tugged in the most exasperated manner she could muster. After sitting for a few moments, she took a deep breath and slowly crept into her dorm so she could have some peace and quiet.  
  
~ The Next Day in Potions Class ~  
  
Ronald Weasley angrily scrubbed at some crusted bubotubor pus that he spilled in the process of making an acne antidote. Professor Snape peered over his shoulder, of course not helping, but just sneering. This was not in the slightest alleviating Ron's horrid mood.  
  
He wouldn't have knocked over the measuring glass if he was paying attention to his surroundings instead of the weary look on Hermione's face. Her hair was pulled back in a hunter green ribbon, but it still struggled against it. Tucking a stray stand of curly hair behind her ear, Hermione reached across her table and turned a page in her book. The bags under her eyes were growing bigger each day, and lines were beginning to form on her forehead from her permanently furrowed brow. It seemed that nowadays, she was either studying or staring sadly into space.  
  
"Ah-ha!" Ron exclaimed, throwing his now sad looking Brillo pad into the trash basket. He swept a hand through his unruly copper hair and turned to Harry, who was laughing with a girl from Hufflepuff.  
  
" 'ey Harry!" Ron cocked his head and signaled for Harry to join him on the opposite side of the room. Harry checked to see if Snape was occupied, and having discovered he was fighting the last concoction Neville laid his hands on, he bounded across the room.  
  
"Yeah?" he asked, pushing his glasses back up his nose. Ron tossed his potions book on his table and leaned against the wall.  
  
"What do you suppose is bugging Hermione?" Ron asked, crossing his arms. "She seems."  
  
"Not herself?" Harry chimed in, nodding his head slowly. "She has been a bit odd lately."  
  
"You think we should ask her what's wrong?" Ron asked, shuffling his feet. "I mean.she's our friend and all, you think she'd do the same for us."  
  
"Yeah, sure." Harry replied, pushing his dark hair out of his eyes. "But.bloody hell, I've got to work on my History of Magic essay due tomorrow."  
  
"Oh...well.then some other ti-" Ron started. But Harry kept on talking anyways.  
  
"So can you talk to her tonight?" Smiling, Harry continued, "that would be great, thanks."  
  
Confused as ever, Ron headed back to his table and gathered his ingredients, seeing as class was ending in two minutes. Surprisingly, Snape had no homework for the class that night and Ron breathed a sigh of relief. Confronting Hermione was going to be a hassle, but having a Potions essay to write on top of everything would ruin his night all together.  
  
After what seemed like two minutes of Professor Snape purely staring down Ron and Harry, the bell finally rang. Ron was almost entirely down the hall when he realized he forgot his wand.  
  
"Of all the dumb things." Ron muttered to himself turned around sharply in the hall. With a loud "oomph!" though, he discovered Luna Lovegood, who was directly behind him, and now sprawled on the floor amongst her scattered schoolbooks.  
  
"Ron!" Luna exclaimed, looking rather surprised, but not in the least angry.  
  
"Oh!" Ron replied, equally surprised as Luna. He quickly crouched down to help Luna retrieve her belongings, setting his own on the floor next to her. "I'm sorry! I'm such a bumbling idiot sometimes."  
  
"Aw, don't say that," Luna said, sticking her wand behind her ear for safekeeping. "I always thought you were rather smart." Luna smirked and grabbed for some multi-colored papers with her flourishing handwriting on it, all the while, keeping her silver eyes glued on Ron.  
  
Blushing under her stare, Ron speedily gathered her remaining papers and stood up, sticking his hands deep in his pockets. "Well! I better be off now!" Ron ran down the hall, disappearing out of Luna's sight.  
  
Sighing, Luna toyed with her butterbeer-cap necklace and trudged onto her next class. 


	2. All The Wrong Parts

~ Later that night in the Gryffindor Common Room ~  
  
"Ron can be such a bumbling idiot sometimes." Hermione thought to herself as she tucked his books and wand under her arm. She scanned the Gryffindor common room, but seeing no lanky red-heads about, she gave up and set the books down with a thud and nestled in her favorite armchair. Before Hermione could take a deep breath and stretch, Harry leisurely strolled through the portrait hole and stretched out on a nearby couch.  
  
"Hello Harry." Hermione said cheerfully, pulling her knees to her chest. "Where have you been?"  
  
"Ah," he replied, finishing a yawn. "Just in the library, working on an essay. Why are you here all alone?"  
  
"Eh, I was looking for Ron," Hermione picked fuzz off her robe and studied the fire. "But he seems to have gone missing."  
  
"Oh, I saw him in the library with Luna." Harry rolled on his stomach, letting his crossed arms create a pillow for his head.  
  
"With Luna Lovegood?" Hermione snapped her head up. "I didn't know Ron had a thing for Luna."  
  
"Whoa, whoa, hold on," Harry chuckled softly. "He doesn't like Luna."  
  
With a skeptical glance, Hermione retorted, "Well then why is he with her in the library?"  
  
"I never said that Luna didn't like Ron." Harry replied, slightly amused.  
  
"Luna likes Ron?" Hermione gasped. She was confused, Hermione had never thought about Ron dating anyone, holding hands, cuddling, snogging and whatnot.  
  
Or had she?  
  
"Why do you care?" Now it was Harry's turn to be confused. "Do you like him?"  
  
"No!" Hermione jumped out of her chair, absolutely shocked that Harry would suggest something like that. "We're friends! Nothing more!"  
  
"Well, it's just that you-"  
  
"It's just that I nothing!" Hermione continued to bellow, but started pacing. "You boys are so ODD! I can't imagine what is going on inside your heads!"  
  
Harry sat up, pushing his glasses into place. "Well Ron and I would like to know what's going on inside that head of yours!"  
  
"What do you mean?!" Hermione gasped. "I behave in a perfectly logical manner." She stuck her nose in the air and crossed her arms.  
  
"Yeah, right, if you consider having mood swings that would shame any St. Mungo's patient perfectly logical!"  
  
"Take that back!" Hermione yelled, but her voice quivered slightly. She hoped Harry didn't notice.  
  
"Bloody girls!" Harry waved his arms above his head, ruffling his hair in the process. "You girls are all so whacko I don't even know what to think! We're better off without you!"  
  
"Harry." Hermione gasped. Her face fell and she dropped her arms to her sides. Her eyebrows drew close together and she sucked her bottom lip in.  
  
"I." Harry stood up, still more than an arms distance away. "You know I don't mean that."  
  
Stretching her neck out, she swallowed tears and licked her lips. "Well." she started, but she couldn't finish. Nothing was coming to mind besides "better off without me?" She turned on her heel, robe fluttering behind her and promptly left Harry standing in the glow of the roaring fire.  
  
As soon as she stepped through the Fat Lady, she could feel the tears spilling over onto her cheeks. Pulling her hand inside her sleeve, she wiped them away hastily and headed towards the library where she could bury her troubles in a book. Heck, she might even find a topic for her Magic Fair project.  
  
She pushed the heavy oak open and sniffed the last of her tears away. There were a few scattered students, trying to cram before the library closed in half an hour. She headed to the tall looming bookcases, determined to lose herself in a book. Scanning the shelves, she settled for Teenage Relationships by June Whitfield.  
  
Obviously, no one had checked out this particular book in a while, because there was a dusty layer covering a vibrant picture of a young bright eyed witch staring through her thick brown fringe. Hermione lifted the book to her face and blew the remaining dust off and opened the cover. Halfway through the first page, a passage caught her eye.  
  
.teenagers of all backgrounds experience the very same thing when they reach a certain age. Love comes into play and seems to ruin everything. The average boy is still coming to grips with his already awkward nature, and has yet to get a handle on his hormones. Girls may seem to become moody and irritable.  
  
"Love?" Hermione thought. "Is that what's bothering all of us?"  
  
She would have gone deeper into her thoughts if a mess of blonde hair didn't zip right past her just then. Hermione pulled the book up, covering just enough of her face to hide, but still see. She crouched down and moved behind a bookcase, peeking out.  
  
All of a sudden, a lanky red-headed boy with a lopsided grin came into view. She could only see the back of the blonde girl, but she assumed it was Luna.  
  
"Well, I better get back to my dorm." Ron rubbed his eyes. "I'm getting pretty tired and the library is closing in fifteen minutes."  
  
"Oh Ron," the blonde cooed. Hermione recognized her voice though. Luna Lovegood. "Are you sure you don't want to go for a walk or something?"  
  
"Aw.naw" Ron blushed, obviously trying not to look at her. He shoved his calloused hands in his pockets and looked down at the floor. His hunter green pullover complimented his copper hair, but not the spreading redness on his cheeks. "I better get back anyways; I need to talk to Hermione tonight anyway."  
  
This seemed to throw Luna, because she stepped back a foot and closed her posture, now crossing her arms and dropping her shoulders. "Hermione Granger?" She said, lifting her chin to meet Ron's eye. Luna was a meager 5'2, and Ron was already 6 foot.  
  
"Yeah, I was just worried about her, ya'know?" Ron shuffled his feet and took his hands out of his pockets. "She seems a bit off lately, didn't you notice?"  
  
"Well she always seemed crazy to me." Luna replied icily. Hermione almost gasped audibly. "Me? Crazy?" Hermione kept to herself, still hiding behind the large book. "She's the one they call Loony Lovegood!"  
  
Ron furrowed his brow, almost.to Hermione's surprise, angrily? He now copied her stance and crossed his arms. Hermione could swear there was a good three feet between them now.  
  
"Why would you say that?" Ron asked, in a flat tone.  
  
"You know. She thinks she's better than everybody else here." Luna tossed her muted blonde hair over her shoulder. "She's always bugging you, isn't she?"  
  
"Yeah," Ron mumbled. Hermione dropped the book a bit, revealing her now saddened face. "But in a good way." He finished.  
  
"A good way?" Luna asked, following with a deep hearty laugh, throwing her head back.  
  
"I've got to go..." Ron started gathering his books from the nearby table. "I'll see you around." And with that, he turned sharply and left Luna and the trails of her laughter.  
  
Throwing the book down, Hermione bolted towards the door, which had just closed. She breathlessly burst through them and pulled Ron's wand out of her robes. He was gradually disappearing down the hallway.  
  
"Ron!" Hermione hollered. "Wait!" Ron sighed loudly and turned around, but slightly jolted back at the presence of Hermione slowly approaching.  
  
"Earlier." Hermione gasped for breath. "You..left." She put her hands on her knees and breathed heavily. "You left your wand in Potions today." She pushed it into his hands and smiled weakly.  
  
"Uh..." Ron stumbled. "Were you in the library just now?"  
  
"Oh, and your books are in your dorm," Hermione continued. "I hope you don't mind that I went in there."  
  
"Were you just in the library just now?" Ron persisted.  
  
"I don't know how you could have left all of your books and wand in potions, actually, I found your books in the hall.but anyways.I guess I'll see you la-" Hermione was starting to ramble.  
  
"Hermione!" Ron shouted, grabbing her shoulders. She stared, open-mouthed at Ron, a pure look of shock on her face. Ron was usually never this forward. "Were you in the library just now?!"  
  
Hermione took a deep breath and nodded slowly. "I was in the library."  
  
Ron clenched his teeth and shook his head. "Luna really doesn't think that you know."  
  
"Yes she does." Hermione sighed, grabbing Ron's wrist, but he wouldn't let go of her shoulder, so she wouldn't let go either.  
  
"No.she's mad, Hermione." Ron shook her gently, her hair swaying slightly. "Come on, LOONY Lovegood."  
  
"Do you like her?" Hermione uncomfortably licked her lips.  
  
"What?" Ron blushed and dropped his arms. "No.she's my friend."  
  
"What's wrong with liking a friend?" Hermione tilted her head slightly.  
  
"Get real Hermione," Ron laughed and pushed her gently. "Like I'd ever fall for a friend!" Smiling uneasily, Hermione nodded.  
  
"Well then," Hermione coughed and shuffled her feet beneath her. "We better get back before we get hollered at." Much to Hermione's surprise, she looked down, and realized she was still holding onto Ron's wrist. Dropping it hastily, she marched ahead of him, straightening her robe. "Are you coming?" She said, without looking back.  
  
Harry stopped Ron in the common room, but Hermione went on to bed without acknowledging his presence. Harry called out to Hermione, and she saw the pained look spread across his face when she turned her back sharply, but she kept walking up the stairs anyhow.  
  
"I guess the talk didn't go so well?" Harry sighed.  
  
"I thought it went fine." Ron mumbled through a mouthful of chocolate he found on a table.  
  
"Then why did she stomp off to her dormitory?" Harry rolled his eyes and slouched onto a couch near the chess board.  
  
"Oh.well." Ron swallowed and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "She seemed angry about Luna or something."  
  
"Why? Did they get in a fight?" Harry replied, reaching for some chocolate.  
  
"No, it's just that." Ron blushed and grew quiet.  
  
"It's just thaaaat?" Harry said, smiling and prodding Ron with a pillow.  
  
"Well.Luna said some mean things about Hermione." Ron replied hastily. "And I think Luna likes me." Ron looked at Harry, whose mouth was hanging open, a small stream of chocolate dribbling out of the corner of his mouth.  
  
"What? Did she tell you?!" Harry almost leapt out of his seat. When he said Luna liked Ron earlier to Hermione, he only said that to rile her up, he never thought it was true!  
  
"Uh.no.not really..." Ron shifted, obviously embarrassed. "She was just all like," Ron widened his eyes, tossed some imaginary blonde hair over his shoulder and threw his voice two pitches higher. "Ohhhh Ron, let's go for a walk!"  
  
The two boys doubled over in fits of laughter, but unbeknownst to them, Hermione was perched at the top stair, biting her lips and deciding whether or not to join them. She knew it was wrong to run off on Harry like that, but to confuse Ron was a terrible wrong, for he was confused a great deal of the time, with or without Hermione's help.  
  
It's just that she was afraid that she might end up liking Harry or Ron. Ever since she read that stupid book!  
  
"I.I don't think I like Harry..." She thought to herself, "or Ron."  
  
Downstairs, she could hear the faint laughter of the boys, as they continued to mimic Luna in all of her mad glory.  
  
"They never laugh around me anymore. They're always acting so weird." Hermione rubbed her feet, which were growing cold from the stone floor. "What if they think I'm in love with them?!" Hermione jerked her head up and flew down the stairs.  
  
"I'M NOT IN LOVE WITH YOU!" She yelled, nodding eagerly. Harry and Ron practically jumped out of their skin at the sight of Hermione wildly flinging herself down the stairs, but her confession of un-love was enough to fill their shock requirements for the next month.  
  
"U-um." Harry stuttered and pushed his ever-sliding glasses back up on his nose.  
  
"What?!" Ron stood up and walked two steps toward Hermione, who pushed her arm out towards them.  
  
"Really!" She smiled widely. The realization was like a cool drink of water to her. "You guys don't have to act odd around me anymore!"  
  
"What in bloody hell are you talking about?" Ron persisted. Harry still sat in a shocked silence.  
  
"Well, I know you guys are starting to think about girls and all.but." She took a deep breath and straightened her neck. "I'm not in love with you, and you're not in love with me, so there is no reason to act all peculiar around each other."  
  
"Who said we were in love with you Hermione?" Harry finally said, laughing.  
  
"Yeah, I mean COME ON." Ron replied, rolling his eyes in the most exaggerated manner he could muster. "It's YOU, Hermione."  
  
Taken aback, Hermione opened her mouth an inch, looking at Harry, then Ron, and back to Harry. "What is that supposed to mean?"  
  
"He just meant to say that you're." Harry dragged. "You're." He looked uneasily at Ron.  
  
"You're." Ron struggled to finish the sentence, but it seemed eating some of Hagrid's Treacle Fudge would have been easier at the moment.  
  
"I'm WHAT?" Hermione exploded. "Ugly?! Self-centered?! Stupid?! WHAT?!"  
  
"No Hermione! You're not stupid!" Ron spat out without thinking.  
  
"WELL THANK YOU VERY MUCH RONALD." Hermione crossed her arms and sucked her lips in, biting them almost to the point of bleeding.  
  
"God, Hermione." Harry shook his head. "If only you were a boy, you'd understand."  
  
And with that, Hermione ran to the bottom of the girl's stairs.  
  
"If only." She said bitterly. "If only." And without a word more, she ran all the way up the stairs, and flung herself down on her bed. She cried herself to sleep that night, not because of what they said, but because of what she had said.  
  
"They're right." Hermione whispered to herself in the dark. "How could anyone ever love me?" 


	3. All The Wrong Parts Chapter Three

Authors Note: Thanks everyone for the awesome reviews! You have no idea how motivating you guys are! I'll try to update every day from now on, but there are no guarantees.  
  
Read and review! It's what keeps me going!  
  
PS: It really gets my goat that they change all of my triple periods (for dramatic pause effect) into single periods! Damn you coding!  
  
~ The Next Morning. Breakfast in the Great Hall ~  
  
The walk to the Great Hall was one of the hardest journeys Hermione Granger would ever have to make in her life, and that's saying something. Someone must have lined her shoes with lead during the night, because her feet dragged, almost as if they were the ones who should have been embarrassed for the outburst.  
  
"Alright Hermione, only two more steps." She comforted herself. "They probably won't even remember last night."  
  
~ At the Gryffindor Table ~  
  
"She probably won't even remember last night!" Harry said to a worry stricken Ron.  
  
"Yes she will Harry." Ron grimaced at the thought of what he said last night.  
  
"I'm WHAT?" Hermione exploded. "Ugly?! Self-centered?! Stupid?! WHAT?!"  
  
"No Hermione! You're not stupid!"  
  
"What was I thinking?!" Ron exclaimed, putting his head down on the table in defeat.  
  
~  
  
"What was I thinking?!" Hermione shouted in her head. She might have inner turmoil, but if the boys didn't tell anyone yet, then she was determined to keep up appearances. So, she plastered herself a nice, wholesome smile and plopped next to Harry and across from Ron at the Gryffindor table. "Good morning!" She said cheerfully.  
  
The boys were a bit puzzled, but as long as she didn't bring up last night, then they wouldn't either!  
  
"Good morning Hermione." Harry said, biting into a roll. "Sleep well?" Hermione stopped moving, her fork caught halfway from her plate to her mouth. Slowly she set it down, turned to Harry and hit him with her brightest smile.  
  
"Of course I did, would there be any reason not to?" She inquired sweetly, a little too sweetly.  
  
"That's good, because aft-" Ron started, but was rudely interrupted when a bagel hit him square between the eyes. "Ouch." He mumbled underneath his breath.  
  
"Because of all the studying you're doing for your Magic Fair project, RIGHT Ron?" Harry said through clenched teeth.  
  
"Oh yeah! Of course, studying.Hermione.studying." Ron nodded quickly, suddenly interested in the cracks on the floor.  
  
"Oh NO!" Hermione gasped, dropping her glass of milk. She grabbed Harry by the collar of his robe, and widened her eyes as large as they could possibly go.  
  
"What? You mean you haven't started it yet?" Harry's jaw dropped, Ron snickered, but Hermione was absolutely mad. She shook Harry frantically, his dark hair flopping about.  
  
"LOVE HAS RUINED MY LIFE!" She stood up, knocking over pitchers and plates, but she didn't notice, her eyes were afire. Ron, to be honest, was afraid.  
  
The Great Hall grew eerily silent as they watched Hermione shake Harry and Ron blush furiously.  
  
"I HAVE TO GO TO THE LIBRARY!" Hermione didn't go any farther than two steps before she slipped on the milk she spilled earlier.  
  
Sitting in a puddle of milk, and with everyone staring at her, she felt her eyes begin to grow moist. All of a sudden, there was a lone cackle from across the room and a familiar sneer came into view.  
  
"No use crying over spilled milk, mudblood!" Draco hooted, slapping his thigh.  
  
"YOU LEAVE HER ALONE!" Ron snapped, narrowing his eyes like a predator about to pounce. Both him and Harry stood up and walked over to Hermione, where she was holding onto the last bit of dignity she could find. They both reached out their hands, and Hermione grasped them, pulling herself up. The look of joy and gratitude that crossed her face warmed Ron and Harry's hearts.  
  
"I really better get to the library." Hermione whispered, looking down at her feet.  
  
"I better go too." Ron jumped in. "I haven't started working on my fair project either."  
  
"Yeah, me too!" Harry chimed. Hermione smiled weakly at the boys and nodded.  
  
To Harry and Hermione's surprise, Ron grabbed Hermione's hand and gave it a tight squeeze. Hermione looked up in shock, but was only met with an understanding grin from Ron. Smiling back, she was shocked again, Harry grabbed her other hand and squeezed as well.  
  
"We better be on our way then." Harry smirked. Hermione thought that the Hall was silent when she fell, but she swore that everyone stopped breathing. That is, until they left the room.  
  
~  
  
Ron and Harry, chatting a little too loudly for the librarian's taste, sat at a nearby table. Ron was leaning up against the wall in his chair, laughing. Harry's green eyes danced when he smiled, and he was smiling quite often now.  
  
Hermione sighed deeply and went back to scanning the books for an interesting topic for her Magic Fair project. "If only I was a boy." She murmured. "I wouldn't mess things up." The dusty tomes were beginning to blend together, and she was getting tired of looking at the same books over and over again. In fact, she didn't know why she was in this aisle; she had already read all of these. But one phrase kept repeating over and over again in her head.  
  
"God, Hermione." Harry shook his head. "If only you were a boy, you'd understand."  
  
Closing her eyes, she stuck her ink stained index finger out and selected a book at random.  
  
"God, Hermione." Harry shook his head. "If only you were a boy, you'd understand."  
  
"Hmm...Everyday Disguises for Everyday Wizards by Ima Pseudonym." Hermione read. "This must be new." On the inside, there was a short summary. She read:  
  
Have you ever wished you could step outside of yourself for an hour? A day? A week? Even a year? Inside this book, you'll find the right spell for any disguise you could ever need!  
  
"Whoa." Hermione whispered. She glanced quickly at Ron and Harry, who were now in the middle of some heated argument about some Quidditch player. She slid against the wall until she was sitting and flipped through the pages eagerly.  
  
An hour later, she shut the book, grinning like a fool. She had finally found her project.  
  
"Hey.um.guys, I'm going to go back to my dorm. I'm kind of tired." Hermione faked a yawn she hoped would pass.  
  
"Oh, we should get back too then." Harry pushed his chair in, and craned his neck to see Hermione's book. "What's that?"  
  
Hermione pulled the book to her chest and hopefully out of Harry's sight. "It's nothing."  
  
Ron, who was now standing so closely behind Hermione that she could feel his breath on her neck, also tried to peek. "If it's nothing, than let us see it!" He laughed and reached around her to grab the book from her. She whipped around in surprise, but stumbled back into Harry. Grabbing her, they both fell to the ground laughing. Hermione clutched the book tighter but giggles erupted and Harry laughed along with her. Slowly, the giggles subsided, and Hermione realized that Harry had broken her fall.  
  
But not only had he broken her fall, but he was still holding onto her. Loosening her grip on the book, she pushed herself up off of Harry's chest.  
  
"Here." Ron snipped, sticking his hand out. "Stand up before we get kicked out." But from the look on Ron's face, she could tell that it wasn't the librarians he was worried about.  
  
"Something wrong Ron?" Hermione asked, tilting her head to the side.  
  
"No, you just said that we better get back." He didn't meet her eyes; instead, he kept his eyes locked on Harry who was brushing himself off. "So let's go."  
  
Hermione was puzzled. Nothing had happened, why was Ron angry all of a sudden? The three of them walked back to the Gryffindor common room in silence. Stepping inside of the portrait hole, Hermione turned to the both of them.  
  
"Well, I'm just gonna get on to bed now." She smiled, hoping to get two smiles back. But instead she just got two boys looking rather bothered. Ron took his hands out of his pockets and clamped one on Hermione's shoulder.  
  
"Goodnight." He said, and walked off, not looking back. Harry stood in front of her still, arms crossed.  
  
"What's wrong with him?" Hermione was puzzled, hoping Harry would have the answer.  
  
"Heh." Harry smirked. "If you were a boy, you'd understand." And in Ron's direction he followed, taking a few steps and turning around to wave goodnight.  
  
"If I were a boy." Hermione repeated under her breath. Book in hand; she skipped into her room to find Ginny Weasley laughing with a few other girls in the dorm.  
  
"Hermy!" Ginny exclaimed. Ginny was the youngest of the Weasley clan. Like her brother Ron, she had bright red hair and a splash of freckles across her cheeks and nose. She was a rather slim girl, about two inches shorter than Hermione. Although she wasn't as tall as Hermione, she looked up to her in more ways than one. Ginny always admired Hermione like a big sister she never had.  
  
"Hi Ginny!" Hermione threw the book on her bed and embraced Ginny warmly.  
  
"Where have you been?" Ginny asked, taking a few steps back to study her.  
  
"Oh, just in the library with Harry and Ron." Hermione said unbuttoning her robe and tossing it on her bed. The mention of Harry Potter generated a few "Oooohhhh Ginny!" remarks from the other girls. And just like her brother, Ginny blushed adorably.  
  
"Shut up!" Ginny waved her hand at the group of girls gathered on a far bed. "Anyway, what's new?"  
  
"I might be gone for a bit." Hermione smirked to herself.  
  
"What?" Ginny looked absolutely distraught. "Why?"  
  
"Just a bit of research, is all." Hermione sat on her bed and pulled her shoes off. "But keep your mouth shut, I still haven't gotten permission."  
  
"My lips are sealed!" Ginny gasped, delighted to be in on a secret with Hermione Granger.  
  
"Good." Hermione said. "I'm going to need all the help I can get." 


End file.
